Chilterns Country

Pub Walk: The Straw Plaiters Walk, Pirton

Walk Description:6 km walk (about 3 1/2 m) across open, rolling farmland. No stiles

Start and Finish:The Motte and Bailey Pub, Pirton

Walking time:Average 11/2 to 2 hours

This is one of a series of walksthrough the Chilterns Area of

Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

It follows rights of way most of

which are waymarked as follows:

Footpath (walkers only)

Bridleway (horse riders, cyclists and walkers)

Byway (open to all tr

The Countryside ManagementService works with communities in

Hertfordshire and north London to care

for and enjoy the countryside. For more

information contact us at:

The Old Dairy, Bedford RoadIckleford, Herts SG5 3RRemail: northeast.cms@hertscc.gov.uk

01462 459395

Supported by the Chilterns Conferenceand Pirton Parish Council

Please be considerate in the countryside -

keep to footpaths, especially through crops,

and leave farm gates as you them.

The Motte and Bailey pub has a childrens play

area and gardens. Home-cooked food is served

all day, seven days a week. Call 01462 712641

to place an order before you walk.

If you started your walk in Pirton in the 19th century,you would have noticed that many of the womensitting at their cottage doors or walking around thevillage were plaiting straw for the Luton hat trade.

Less visible were the children, some as young as three,who attended the village plait schools. Here they wouldspend long, uncomfortable hours plaiting and no doubtrather less time learning to read and write.

This cottage industry was an important part of village lifefrom the 17th century until the 20th century andprovided extra income for poor families. Straw dealerspurchased wheat stacks from the farmers and sold thestripped and bleached straw to the plaiters, who took the

plaits to Hitchin Market.

The chalk-sprinkled you see as you climb up WoodLane, may help explain why straw plaiting developed here.The thin Chilterns soil provided ideal conditions for growingthe soft pliable wheat needed for straw hats.

While women plaited, many of the men and older boysworked as agricultural labourers, growing wheat, barley,hay crops and turnips. By the early 19th century largeopen made up of blocks of strips, had been‘enclosed’, creating smaller, regular bounded byhawthorn hedges. Farming methods have certainlychanged, and some hedges have been grubbed out, butthe pattern of remains much the same today.

These days there are very few men in the village whomake a living from farming, and there are no strawplaiters left. Pirton has seen many changes, but it is still aworking village, as well as somewhere to enjoy for itsquiet beauty. And in its cottages and lanes, hedges and

it is rich with reminders of the past.

The Straw Plaiters Walk

How to get to Pirton

The nearest train station is Hitchin, from where the

89 bus runs every day except Sundays, stopping

outside the Motte and Bailey pub. For details call the

Hertfordshire Traveline on 0845 724 4344. Pirton can

be reached by bike along the Hambridge Way cycle

path. If you need to come by car, please park in the

Motte and Bailey car park.

Notes on the walk

The Motte and Bailey pub. Turn left and cross the

green, passing the village sign which depicts hands

plaiting straw. Behind it once stood a small thatched

cottage, which housed one of the plaiting schools.

The Icknield Way Path covers 120 miles of chalk

ridge, closely following the historical route of the

Icknield Way.

Before veering left here, go ahead for about 100

metres for a good view of Knocking Knoll, the Iron

Age Long Barrow, and the Bedfordshire plains.

Pause here to admire the views of Letchworth and

Hitchin, and beyond to the hills around Weston.

Fast traffic - take care crossing.

Highdown House, which you pass on your right, was

built in the early 17th century and was a cavalier

stronghold during the civil war.

Coming back into Pirton, cross the Bury to Toot

Hill, the grassy mound where a twelfth century

Motte and Bailey castle once stood.

key

the straw plaiters walk

footpath

bridleway

recreational path

If you wish to plan your ownwalk in the area, the map used

for this leaflet is based upon

Ordnance Survey Explorer map 193.

scale: 1 kilometre

© Crown CopyrightAll rights reservedHertfordshire County CouncilLA 076678 99/02

Walking gets you fit and keeps you healthy